Piezoelectric lighter for synchronous flat and torch flames

ABSTRACT

A piezoelectric lighter includes a torch nozzle, having a receiving opening, received in the nozzle housing, a gas nozzle received in the nozzle housing at a position adjacent to the torch nozzle, and a fuel diverging system including a fuel guider having an fuel inlet communicating with the liquefied fuel storage and a fuel outlet, a first gas diffuser provided at the receiving opening of the torch nozzle to communicate the fuel outlet with the torch nozzle, and a second gas diffuser operatively connected to the fuel guider to communicate the liquefied fuel storage with the gas nozzle through the fuel lo inlet, in such a manner that the gas is released towards the torch nozzle and the gas nozzle through the first and second gas diffusers respectively to produce a torch flame and a flat flame in a synchronization manner.

[0001] The present invention relates to a piezoelectric lighter, and more particularly to a piezoelectric lighter which is adapted to produce both a visible flame and a torch flame at the same time for igniting a cigarette or a cigar.

[0002] A lighter is a common tool that replaces matches for igniting cigarettes and cigars. Generally, there are two types of lighter, namely the regular lighter that produces visible flame and the torch lighter that produces torch flame.

[0003] There are various types of regular lighter, including the disposable lighter incorporated with a flint type ignition system and the piezoelectric lighter incorporated with a piezoelectric type ignition system. Such regular lighter is capable of generating a visible flame which is merely a single tongue of flame. Due to the soft and weak nature of the visible flame, most of such visible flame lighters are good at igniting cigarettes but find difficulty when igniting a cigar.

[0004] Since the cigar has a bigger diameter and the cigar tobacco is dryer and harder, the torch lighter that can produce a stronger and hotter torch is generally used to ignite the cigars. However, the strong and hot torch is not suitable to ignite the cigarette since the high temperature torch flame will destroy the taste of the tobacco. In addition, it is a hassle for the smoker to light a cigarette or a cigar outdoors while using the visible flame type piezoelectric lighter. Thus, it is inconvenient for the smokers to carry two different types of lighter at once.

[0005] An improved lighter comprises a flame nozzle and a torch nozzle for selectively producing the visible flame and the torch flame by depression position of the actuator. The ignition operation of such lighter is unreliable because the actuator must be depressed at different ignition levels to selectively ignite the lighter for producing the visible flame and the torch flame respectively. However, the ignition level of the actuator leads to different operational results depending on the users. Therefore, such lighter is disadvantageous in practical use.

[0006] A main object of the present invention is to provide a piezoelectric lighter which is adapted to produce both a visible flame and a torch flame at the same time for igniting a cigarette or a cigar.

[0007] Another object of the present invention is to provide a piezoelectric lighter for synchronous visible and torch flames, wherein the ignition of the piezoelectric lighter of the present invention requires a simple single-action operation to produce the visible flame and the torch flame at the same time.

[0008] Another object of the present invention is to provide a piezoelectric lighter for synchronous visible and torch flames, which does not require to alter the original structural design of the piezoelectric lighter so as to minimize the manufacturing cost of the piezoelectric lighter.

[0009] Another object of the present invention is to provide a piezoelectric lighter for synchronous flat and torch flames, wherein no expensive or complicated mechanism is required to employ in the piezoelectric lighter, so that the present invention successfully provides an economic and efficient solution not only for producing the visible flame and the torch flame at the same time but also for facilitating the practical use of the piezoelectric lighter.

[0010] a gas nozzle received in the nozzle housing at a position adjacent to the torch nozzle for producing a visible flame;

[0011] an ignition actuator movably supported at the casing for releasing the gas from the liquefied fuel storage so as to ignite the gases ejected from the torch nozzle and the gas nozzle to respectively produce the torch flame and the visible flame in a synchronization manner.

[0012] Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings, a piezoelectric lighter according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is illustrated, wherein the piezoelectric lighter comprises a casing 10 having a liquefied fuel storage 11 and a nozzle housing 12 provided on a ceiling of the casing 10, a torch nozzle 20, having a receiving opening 201, received in the nozzle housing 12 for producing a torch flame F1, and a gas nozzle 30 received in the nozzle housing 12 at a position adjacent to the torch nozzle 20 for producing a visible flame F2.

[0013] The ignition actuator 60 is movably supported at the casing 10 for releasing the gas from the liquefied fuel storage 11 so as to ignite the gases ejected from the torch nozzle 20 and the gas nozzle 30 to respectively produce the torch flame F1 and the visible flame F2 in a synchronization manner.

[0014] As shown in FIG. 2, the fuel diverging system 40 further comprises a fuel guiding tube 44 communicatively connecting the liquefied fuel storage 11 with the fuel inlet 411 of the fuel guider 41 and a fuel directing tube 45 communicatively connecting the fuel outlet 412 of the fuel guider 41 with the first gas diffuser 42, for guiding a portion of the gas released from the fuel outlet 412 of the fuel guider 41 to the first gas diffuser 42 in a free flowing manner. The fuel diverging system 40 further comprises a gas restoring tube 46 communicatively connecting the second gas diffuser 42 with the gas nozzle 30 wherein the gas restoring tube 46 is capable of restoring the gas in a normal pressure while ejecting from the second gas diffuser 43 towards the gas nozzle 30 for producing the visible flame F2.

[0015] It is worth to mention that in order to form the torch flame F1, a strong and pressurized gaseous fuel is required to eject from the emitting opening 202 of the torch nozzle 20. However, a soft gaseous fuel is required to eject from the gas nozzle 30 for producing the visible flame F2 therefrom.

[0016] In addition, when the flow of gas passes from the second gas diffuser 43 to the gas nozzle 30 through the gas restoring tube 46, the speed of the gas is reduced along the gas restoring tube 46 such that when the gas is ejected at the gas nozzle 30, the gas is ignited by the spark producing means 50 to form the visible flame F2. In other words, the gas restoring tube 46 restores the gas in a normal pressure while ejecting from the second gas diffuser 43 towards the gas nozzle 30 to form the visible flame F2, as shown in FIG. 2.

[0017] According to the preferred embodiment, the ignition actuator 60 comprises a fuel valve 61 operatively communicating the liquefied fuel storage 11 with the fuel inlet 411 of the fuel guider 41, an actuation button 62 movably mounted on the ceiling of the casing 10 at a position on top end of the piezoelectric unit 50, and a gas lever 63 having a first end connected to the fuel valve 61 and a second end mounted on a bottom end of the actuation button 62 in such a manner that when the actuation button 62 is depressed downwardly, the first end of the fuel valve 61 is pivotally lifted up for releasing the gas while the movable operating part 51 of the piezoelectric unit 50 is depressed to generate sparks simultaneously for igniting the gases ejected from the torch nozzle 20 and the gas nozzle 30 so as to respectively produce the torch flame F1 and the visible flame F2 in a synchronization manner.

[0018] Moreover, the piezoelectric lighter of the present invention is capable of producing more than one torch flame F1 and/or visible flame F2 by incorporating a third gas diffuser so that the flow of fuel released from the liquefied fuel storage 11 is evenly diverged via the gas guider 41 towards the gas diffusers. It is worth to mention that for producing an additional torch flame, the piezoelectric lighter should further incorporate with an additional torch nozzle wherein the third gas diffuser is operatively provided at the additional torch nozzle to communicate with the gas guider 41. For producing an additional visible flame, the piezoelectric lighter should further incorporate with an additional gas nozzle wherein the third gas diffuser is operatively connected to the gas guider 41 to communicate with the additional gas nozzle. 

1. A piezoelectric lighter comprising: a casing having a liquefied fuel storage and a nozzle housing provided on a ceiling of said casing; a torch nozzle, having a receiving opening, received in said nozzle housing for producing a torch flame, wherein said torch nozzle is upwardly extended to said ceiling of said casing; a gas nozzle received in said nozzle housing at a position adjacent to said torch nozzle for producing a flame, wherein said gas nozzle is upwardly extended to said ceiling of said casing at a position parallel to said torch nozzle; a fuel diverging system comprising a fuel guider having a fuel inlet communicating with said liquefied fuel storage and a fuel outlet, a first gas diffuser provided at said receiving opening of said torch nozzle to communicate said fuel outlet of said fuel guider with said torch nozzle, and a second gas diffuser operatively connected to said fuel guider to communicate said liquefied fuel storage with said gas nozzle through said fuel inlet of said fuel guider, wherein said fuel guider is arranged for guiding a flow of gas released from said liquefied fuel storage towards said torch nozzle and said gas nozzle through said first and second gas diffusers respectively; means for producing sparks towards said fuel nozzle and said gas nozzle; and an ignition actuator movably supported at said casing for releasing said gas from said liquefied fuel storage so as to ignite said gases ejected from said torch nozzle and said gas nozzle to respectively produce said torch flame and said flame at the same time in a synchronization manner.
 2. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 1, wherein said first gas diffuser has a releasing outlet having a diameter equal to a diameter of a releasing outlet of said second gas diffuser for directing the same amount of gases towards said torch nozzle and said gas nozzle respectively.
 3. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 2, wherein said diameter of each said releasing outlet of said first and second gas diffuser is 0.06 mm.
 4. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 1, wherein said fuel diverging system further comprises a gas restoring tube communicatively connecting said second gas diffuser with said gas nozzle, wherein said fuel restoring tube is capable of restoring said gas in a normal pressure while ejecting from said second gas diffuser towards said gas nozzle for producing said flame.
 5. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 2, wherein said fuel diverging system further comprises a gas restoring tube communicatively connecting said second gas diffuser with said gas nozzle, wherein said fuel restoring tube is capable of restoring said gas in a normal pressure while ejecting from said second gas diffuser towards said gas nozzle for producing said flame.
 6. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 3, wherein said fuel diverging system further comprises a gas restoring tube communicatively connecting said second gas diffuser with said gas nozzle, wherein said fuel restoring tube is capable of restoring said gas in a normal pressure while ejecting from said second gas diffuser towards said gas nozzle for producing said flame.
 7. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 4, wherein said fuel diverging system further comprises a fuel directing tube communicatively connecting said fuel outlet of said fuel guider with said first gas diffuser for guiding a portion of said gas released from said fuel outlet of said fuel guider to said first gas diffuser in a freely flowing manner.
 8. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 5, wherein said fuel diverging system further comprises a fuel directing tube communicatively connecting said fuel outlet of said fuel guider with said first gas diffuser for guiding a portion of said gas released from said fuel outlet of said fuel guider to said first gas diffuser in a freely flowing manner.
 9. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 6, wherein said fuel diverging system further comprises a fuel directing tube communicatively connecting said fuel outlet of said fuel guider with said first gas diffuser for guiding a portion of said gas released from said fuel outlet of said fuel guider to said first gas diffuser in a freely flowing manner.
 10. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 1, wherein said torch nozzle comprises a tubular nozzle head having a lower root end forming said receiving opening to mount said first gas diffuser in position, an upper emitting end forming an emitting opening, and an air inlet provided at a position adjacent to said receiving opening to define an elongated mixing chamber axially extended between said air inlet to said emitting opening, wherein a flow of air is capable of inletting into said mixing chamber through said air inlet to mix with said gas releasing from said first gas diffuser through said receiving opening to form a mixture gas at said emitting opening for producing said torch flame when said mixture gas is ejected and ignited at said emitting opening of said nozzle head.
 11. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 2, wherein said torch nozzle comprises a tubular nozzle head having a lower root end forming said receiving opening to mount said first gas diffuser in position, an upper emitting end forming an emitting opening, and an air inlet provided at a position adjacent to said receiving opening to define an elongated mixing chamber axially extended between said air inlet to said emitting opening, wherein a flow of air is capable of inletting into said mixing chamber through said air inlet to mix with said gas releasing from said first gas diffuser through said receiving opening to form a mixture gas at said emitting opening for producing said torch flame when said mixture gas is ejected and ignited at said emitting opening of said nozzle head.
 12. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 5, wherein said torch nozzle comprises a tubular nozzle head having a lower root end forming said receiving opening to mount said first gas diffuser in position, an upper emitting end forming an emitting opening, and an air inlet provided at a position adjacent to said receiving opening to define an elongated mixing chamber axially extended between said air inlet to said emitting opening, wherein a flow of air is capable of inletting into said mixing chamber through said air inlet to mix with said gas releasing from said first gas diffuser through said receiving opening to form a mixture gas at said emitting opening for producing said torch flame when said mixture gas is ejected and ignited at said emitting opening of said nozzle head.
 13. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 9, wherein said torch nozzle comprises a tubular nozzle head having a lower root end forming said receiving opening to mount said first gas diffuser in position, an upper emitting end forming an emitting opening, and an air inlet provided at a position adjacent to said receiving opening to define an elongated mixing chamber axially extended between said air inlet to said emitting opening, wherein a flow of air is capable of inletting into said mixing chamber through said air inlet to mix with said gas releasing from said first gas diffuser through said receiving opening to form a mixture gas at said emitting opening for producing said torch flame when said mixture gas is ejected and ignited at said emitting opening of said nozzle head.
 14. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 1, wherein said spark producing means comprises a piezoelectric unit, which is disposed in said casing for generating piezoelectricity, comprising a movable operating part extended upwardly and an ignition tip extended to a closed with said torch nozzle and said gas nozzle wherein when said movable operating part is depressed downwardly, said sparks are generated from said ignition tip towards said torch nozzle and said gas nozzle.
 15. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 3, wherein said spark producing means comprises a piezoelectric unit, which is disposed in said casing for generating piezoelectricity, comprising a movable operating part extended upwardly and an ignition tip extended to a closed with said torch nozzle and said gas nozzle wherein when said movable operating part is depressed downwardly, said sparks are generated from said ignition tip towards said torch nozzle and said gas nozzle.
 16. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 5, wherein said spark producing means comprises a piezoelectric unit, which is disposed in said casing for generating piezoelectricity, comprising a movable operating part extended upwardly and an ignition tip extended to a closed with said torch nozzle and said gas nozzle wherein when said movable operating part is depressed downwardly, said sparks are generated from said ignition tip towards said torch nozzle and said gas nozzle.
 17. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 12, wherein said spark producing means comprises a piezoelectric unit, which is disposed in said casing for generating piezoelectricity, comprising a movable operating part extended upwardly and an ignition tip extended to a closed with said torch nozzle and said gas nozzle wherein when said movable operating part is depressed downwardly, said sparks are generated from said ignition tip towards said torch nozzle and said gas nozzle.
 18. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 15, wherein said ignition actuator comprises a fuel valve operatively communicating said liquefied fuel storage with said fuel inlet of said fuel guider, an actuation button movably mounted on said ceiling of said casing at a position on top of said piezoelectric unit, and a gas lever having a first end connected to said fuel valve and a second end mounted on a bottom end of said actuation button in such a manner that when said actuation button is depressed downwardly, said first end of said fuel valve is pivotally lifted up for releasing said gas while said movable operating part of said piezoelectric unit is depressed to generate sparks simultaneously for igniting said gases ejected from said torch nozzle and said gas nozzle so as to respectively produce said torch flame and said flame in a synchronization manner.
 19. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 16, wherein said ignition actuator comprises a fuel valve operatively communicating said liquefied fuel storage with said fuel inlet of said fuel guider, an actuation button movably mounted on said ceiling of said casing at a position on top of said piezoelectric unit, and a gas lever having a first end connected to said fuel valve and a second end mounted on a bottom end of said actuation button in such a manner that when said actuation button is depressed downwardly, said first end of said fuel valve is pivotally lifted up for releasing said gas while said movable operating part of said piezoelectric unit is depressed to generate sparks simultaneously for igniting said gases ejected from said torch nozzle and said gas nozzle so as to respectively produce said torch flame and said flame in a synchronization manner.
 20. A piezoelectric lighter, as recited in claim 17, wherein said ignition actuator comprises a fuel valve operatively communicating said liquefied fuel storage with said fuel inlet of said fuel guider, an actuation button movably mounted on said ceiling of said casing at a position on top of said piezoelectric unit, and a gas lever having a first end connected to said fuel valve and a second end mounted on a bottom end of said actuation button in such a manner that when said actuation button is depressed downwardly, said first end of said fuel valve is pivotally lifted up for releasing said gas while said movable operating part of said piezoelectric unit is depressed to generate sparks simultaneously for igniting said gases ejected from said torch nozzle and said gas nozzle so as to respectively produce said torch flame and said flame in a synchronization manner. 